Love is Never Eternal
by Kawaii Dragoness
Summary: Tenchi's dying, it's Ryoko's fault. What happens on his deathbed? What happens afterwards?


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Loss is Never Eternal  
By Kawaii

Notes: This is my first Ten-Ryo, based in Universe, so don't be surprised. I'm not exactly a believer of Ten-Ryo, either, but it was requested by one of my RL buds, so I had to do it. It's really sad, on Ryoko's part, and she is _definitely _OOC unless you consider Zero Ryoko in the OAVbut this is really based on Universe.

Summary: Tenchi is dying, and it's really Ryoko's fault. She feels guilty about it, and Tenchi wants her to feel better through his death.  
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I'm gonna get you for what you did to me, Kagato! Ryoko shouted, hurling a yellow ball of energy towards her enemy. Tenchi was next to Kagato, with his sword, after summoning up the Light Hawk Wings. Ryoko realized what she had done, but it was too little too late.

She had missed her target, and hit Tenchi.

Tenchi was aching all over the place, ready to collapse. He was dying! But Ryoko couldn't do anything. Together, the girls brought Tenchi to the house and put him on his bed.

The days went on afterwards. Tenchi had lots of medicine, carrot soup, and vegetables. He wasn't; getting better, though. Everyone knew that he wouldn't live long.

Two weeks after the incident, everyone knew Tenchi would die that day. Even Sasami, who was very optimistic, had to admit it. Ryoko took it hard, and spent the whole day in there. She sat there, all day, doing nothing. She ignored everyone who came, except when Sasami came to put the soup at the door. Nearly midnight, she suddenly felt something.

She had never grieved death. She had never felt love. She had never felt guilt. She had never felt sadness. And now that she wasshe cried.

Why are you crying, Ryoko? Tenchi asked.

Ryoko hesitated, then answered. Because I love you, and it's my fault that you're dying. 

Tenchi looked at her with his dark brown eyes in a compassionate, gentle look and said, I know you love me, Ryoko. Don't cryI'll be heartbroken. Everyone, including space pirates, makes mistakes, Ryoko. But I don't want to see you cry. You're so beautiful, Ryoko-san, except when your eyes are full of tears of sadness. I love you, Ryoko-san, beautiful one. I really do. 

Ryoko chokes on her words, crying. She says, in disbelief, you don'tyou like somebody else—anybody but me. You'd never love a villainyou fight them, not love them, and I'm nothing but a space pirate—a monster—a mummy—nothing good, just evil. No one respects me, let alone loves me. I'm always so lonely in the worldbecause I want to feel that I'm loved, but I can't beacuase no one would love a space pirate.

That's how the world sees you. You are _loved_, Ryoko. Accept it, learn, it, take advantage of it. You have tobecause I love you. _I could never lie to you, Ryoko-san. I never could._

If you do, you'd prove it. Ryoko said, quietly. And suddenly, without warninghe kissed her, hard, with a lot of tongue, using up all the energy he was supposed to conserve in order to stay alive as long as possible. 

Ryoko was pretty surprised. She thought that Tenchi was lesswell, less passionate, less dominant. But here he was, French kissing her on his deathbed to proved he loved her. You really can't blame her for being shocked. She added in her own passion, her own feeling, knowing at last that she was finally loved in truth and that even if he died he would protect her heart. 

The two lovers finally let go, but Tenchi suddenly realized that he had used all his energy in kissing her. He closed his eyes, dying, in his lover Ryoko-san's arms. Ryoko panicked. Tenchi-kun! Wake up! Please! No, no, nodon't leave me, Tenchi, my love, my only one, oh god, please no, please noyou were my first love, we could have so muchtogether, just us noooo! You can't leave the one you love, Tenchi-kun, you can't, you told me to take advantage of your love, please, no, no, no She knew he was dead at that point. She screamed. 

Everybody ran to the room and opened the door. Ryoko? What happened? Sasami asked. She noticed that Ryoko was crying, a rarity. Why are you crying, Ryoko?

I'm sorry, Sasami. I'm sorry, everybody. But I have to tell youTenchi's gone. He can't be with us anymore. But he died telling me he love me. Ryoko said. That's why I'm really sad. I'm sad because we could have had so much together. Ryoko said, crying.

Tenchi-sama is dead and it's all YOUR fault, Ryoko! What do you have to say for this?! Aeka asked.

That I'm really sorry for my mistake, I'll aim better next time, I want revenge on Kagato more than ever. But I _am not_ going to say that I lost Tenchi, because loss is never eternal. I don't know where I learned that, but I did, and it has made all the difference to me.

Fine, I'll accept that. Would youyou agree to a truce? Aeka asked. Tenchi is yours, he confessed to you. That's final. But we really can't fight over him. It wouldn't be right if we fought over a dead man's body, especially if he was with one of us while he was alive.

All right, agreed, Ryoko said, and they shook hands on it, in a quiet solemn oath to not publicly show their anger for each other, although inside they still hated each other ever the more.

Soon enough, Washuu left to some place in the galaxy where she belonged (and where she found her long-lost now-grown-up son to be.) Mihoshi and Kiyone left to another sector when they were asked to board another galaxy and where Kiyone actually got a promotion (gasp) and a better partner (faints.) Tenchi had been the one to bring them together, and without him they would break apart.

It was a cold, windy day at the shrine. Ryoko was among the crowd at Tenchi's funeral, crying like the rest. When the crowds left Ryoko to her thoughts, she had an idea. She took out a golden lapel pin of an angel that she wore underneath her outer clothes, and placed it there. It was the most expensive thing she had, save the gems, and she had vowed to herself that it would end up to be Tenchi's. And now it was his.

When she puts it down, she said quietly, I have lost you, Tenchi, but I will never lose your heart. I love you, and you will not die from me. Take this, and may you soar gracefully to the heavens as this angel has. I looked at the angel before, and thought that it was exactly what I was not. Through you, I know that I have the angelic side within. Thank you. May my loss not be eternal, for loss is never eternal. And I know that somewhere among the clouds above I will find your compassionate, loving face again smiling upon me, because you love me. Thank God that loss is never eternal, and that love is.

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End  
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Notes: So whaddya think? I liked it. Considering that it was my first Ten-Ryo, it came out well. Ryoko was badly OOC, though. Ah well. I don't think that I can make a sequel for thisif you think I can, and have an idea for it, e-mail me at [kawaiimae@loveable.com][1]. If you accessed this on the FFN, review below. Thanks!

Luv ya,  
Kawaii 

   [1]: mailto:kawaiimae@loveable.com



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